December 17, 2007

CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA . . . The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) announced today that Coe College women’s basketball player Amber Karkosh (Toledo, Iowa/South Tama) and men’s basketball player Kyle Kuenstling (Dunkerton, Iowa/Dunkerton) have been named the IIAC Female and Male Athletes of the Week for the period ending Sunday, December 16. The Conference also announced the Performers of the Week for each of the Conference’s three sports in competition during the week.

Women’s Basketball – Amber Karkosh, Coe College, Toledo, Iowa/South Tama
Karkosh, a senior forward, recorded her third straight game of double-figure scoring with 23 points on 8-of-13 shooting against Grinnell. She also pulled down 10 rebounds and had three assists as the Kohawks equaled their win total for all of last season with their eighth win of the season. (IIAC Female Athlete of the Week)

Men’s Basketball – Kyle Kuenstling, Coe College, Dunkerton, Iowa/Dunkerton
Kuenstling, a senior forward, scored a season-high 32 points while pulling down nine rebounds and dishing out five assists in a 70-64 win over Maryville (Mo.). He also had 10 rebounds in the Kohawks’ five-point loss to 12th-ranked Washington (Mo.). (IIAC Male Athlete of the Week)

Wrestling – Aaron Cook, Buena Vista University, Waconia, Minn./Waconia
Cook, a junior 149-pounder, improved his overall record to 15-2 by going 4-0 at the Terry Haws Duals hosted by Saint John’s (Minn.). He posted a technical fall and a major decision in his first two matches before tallying a 7-1 decision over Drew Larson of the host Johnnies. Cook’s biggest win of the day came in his final match, where he upset NCAA Division II No. 6 Shane Walton of Minnesota State University, Moorhead by a 6-5 score.

Other Outstanding Weekly Performers
The IIAC also recognized the following outstanding athletic performances from the past week.

Women’s Basketball – Simpson College senior forward Katelyn Whiton (Panora, Iowa/Perry) scored 17 points and pulled down 11 rebounds in the Storm’s 79-52 win over St. Thomas (Minn.). Whiton shot 7-of-14 from the field, made two assists and three steals as Simpson improved to 8-1 overall on the season.

Wrestling – University of Dubuque sophomore 157-pounder Joshua Terrell (Round Lake, Ill./Round Lake) posted a 4-0 record for the Spartans at the Terry Haws Duals hosted by Saint John’s (Minn.). Terrell defeated Joe Lofboom of Saint John’s (12-2), Tallen Wald of MSU-Moorhead (11-3), and Michael Ourada of Ridgewater (11-1) by major decision and Josh Sundgren of St. Cloud State (20-5) by technical fall.

Men’s Basketball – Central College sophomore forward Miguel Ley (San Antonio, Texas/Judson) scored 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting with seven rebounds in a 99-59 Dutch win at Crown (Minn.). Ley also made three of five three pointers.

Men’s Basketball – Cornell College junior guard Griffin LaDew (Pewaukee, Wis./Waukesha Memorial Catholic) scored a career-high 31 points behind 11-of-16 shooting in a 83-80 loss at Faith Baptist Dec. 14. He averaged 24.5 points and 6.5 rebounds and went 8-of-15 from three-point range in two games last week.

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